Happy 241st birthday to the republic of America

As we celebrate the birth of our nation, with picnics, barbecues, baseball games and fireworks, let us take a moment to reflect on what our Founding Fathers gave us. They worked hard to give us a form of government called a republic. Our country is a republic, not a democracy. We are a nation of laws — where everyone is subject to these laws, from the president to the newest, youngest infant. Everyone is subject to the laws of our republic. Citizens, visitors, tourists and immigrants. Our country is not a democracy, in spite of what many people think. (And what we’ve been told over the years.) No place in the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution does the word “democracy” appear. Check it out. Read both carefully. The foundation of our country is a republic.

A republic is a nation of laws, while a democracy is rule by the majority. This sounds like a good way, even a great way to govern. However, if the majority is convinced by any group or idea to pass a law or to repeal one, it may not be the best way to go. A convincing argument for, is too often filled with misleading facts. Or “quasi-facts,” even outright falsehoods, not to mention the built-in “scare tactics.” Groups on both ends of the political spectrum have been guilty of this.

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